Northwestel drops overage charges by $0.50/GB

Northwestel customers will be paying less for going over their internet usage caps, the telecommunications provider announced Monday in a media advisory.

Customers will now pay $0.50 less per gigabytefor exceeding their usage caps on non-satellite packages. Before the change, customers in the Northwest Territories paid between$2 and $3 for every gigabyte used above the limits set in their plans.

The changes are the result of a Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) ruling from March of last year. Northwestel'sinternet rates werecalled into question by the CRTCin late 2013, asrates in the territories often approached three to four times those in Southern Canada.

In the ruling, the CRTCannounced that Northwestel must lower overage charges by at least $0.50 per gigabyte by February of 2016.

• CRTC rules Northwestel must reduce DSL internet rates 10-30%

The CRTC also ruled thatNorthwestel had to reduce rates for its DSL customers, not charge additional fees to customers who don't "bundle" their internet service with telephone service, and not increase residential internet rates until the end of 2017 at the earliest and only then with the permission of the CRTC.

DSL usage blocks announced

In addition, Northwestel announced that its DSL customers in Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Northern British Columbia can now purchase "usage blocks." The blocks, which can be purchased for $40/month, allow customers to add 50 gigabytes of usage to their plan without additional overage costs.

Curtis Shaw, Northwestel's vice president of residential markets, said in the advisory that "these changes will mean more money in the bank for our most active customers.

"We know our customers want more affordable options for getting the most out of their internet.We've listened and today we're acting to make our usage fees cheaper, and for DSL customers, more flexible."